Anaheim 1 ‘Pit Party fundamentals’ and a chat with Sean Borkenhagen

By ~ AngeÃ‚Â

Race day starts out early for everyone; mechanics are gearing up the bikes getting all the last minute details figured out! The Pit Party starts at about noon so getting there early is a good idea, especially now that Supercross offers an array of activities for all ages to enjoy.

Supercross continues to bring in new and interesting pit party options for all ages; starting with a virtual riding experience for little kids; your kids will feel like they are riding their favorite tracks.

For those of you who have never thrown a leg over a dirt bike, here’s your chance to try out a virtual dirt bike ride or should I say dirt bike bull riding experience? Yes that sounds funny, but just look for the BIG red pickup truck with a dirt bike in the back. Of course we all need wall decorations from our favorite Supercross Pros and the pits are filled with tons of FREE posters and all kinds of trinkets from your favorite racers and the many sponsors and vendors who appreciate your business!

An hour after the pits open, the guys make their way to the track for the qualifying heats; this is my favorite time of the day and it’s your best time for an up close look at the riders learning the track before the nights program. After the 1st sets of qualifiers were completed it was break time before the next set, so back to the pits to recharge and reconnect. This was now my time to catch up with the riders and see how they are feeling about the first race of the year. Ã‚Â

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The first person I spoke with was #85 Sean Borkenhagen; I had definitely heard about this guy coming up in the amateurs series, so I was excited to talk with Sean in person and hear how he was adjusting to his debut into the Supercross, riding the West Coast Lites Series for the Troy Lee Designs team.

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Angela: Sean you just raced your first qualifying race, how did it go out there, what did you think of your 1st Anaheim?

Sean: The 1st qualifying race was good, it was a little tacky and I am not really used to that, our Honda track is really dry but it just feels really good to get it out of the way now. I feel like I kind of got the bugs out of my system. We came back here and made some changes with my mechanic Clint, and we are looking forward to the next sessions, hopefully I will put in some faster lap times.

A: You have one more qualifying race before the night’s show do you any nerves about tonight or will you work that out in qualifying?

S: Yeah, it seems like when I get ready, I get into the zone and I am ready to rock.Ã‚Â I do not want to over think it, I would get nervous that way but I feel confident coming in, I am excited for my first race in the night show, hopefully I will be in it, I haven’t seen if I qualified yet, but I hope I am.Ã‚Â So, it should be good, I am really excited to be out there in front of the fans and I will try and ride my best.

A: You are a new rider to the 09 series but you will also be representing a new team in the 09 Supercross series Sean, what’s that like for you?

S: Yeah, I am with the Troy Lee Design, Seaspan Honda Team. It’s a really great team, we all click really well. David Pingree is the Team Manager and Troy is obviously the owner and they all guide me in the right direction. We run really fast bikes and lots of testing was done over the past couple of months and I feel really good about where we are at right now.

A: Sean this will be your 1st Supercross, riding in the West Coast Lites series, how does that feel?

S: Yes this is my 1st Supercross, I am very excited, and hopefully I won’t pull any rookie mistakes!

A: You are coming out of the Motocross Nationals Series with a lot of experience, can you tell us how that season went for you and is that experience going to help you here tonight?

S: Ã‚Â Yeah, coming into Supercross, it kind of feels like it did when I first went out in the Motocross Nationals Series, so if it’s just like it was for outdoors, once I get the first one out of the way you can just focus on what you are doing instead of taking everything in at once. The Outdoors went well; I scored 22pts and got #85 which I am pretty pumped about and I think I finished 28th in the overall.Ã‚Â Ã‚Â I was hoping to do a lot better but I did what I could with what I had and now we are here on a team and I am really happy about that.

A: It sounds like the 09 Season should be good for you, talk about the people that support you out here and the group of guys under the tent here at the Troy Lee Designs Team?

S: My Dad, Mom, and sisters for sure; also my mechanic Clint Blackwell helps me out tremendously, I’ve never had a mechanic so that makes a huge difference in my program. And my sponsorsÃ‚Â Troy Lee Design, Seaspan, Honda, Pro Circuit, Skull Candy, Avia Shoes, AlpineStars, Donlop, and Mid Cities Honda. And the guys on the team; there’s Chris Blose, Steve Boniface, Jake Moss, and Jimmy Albertson, that’s the team but both Jake and Jimmy are out with injuries for now. But you will be seeing me and Chris Blose riding the West Coast Lites Class and Steve Boniface on the 450.

A: Awesome, thank you so much Sean, and good luck with the rest of the season!

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